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Left parties

The Modi government and the BJP have unleashed the forces of Hindutva which threatens the secular and democratic values of the Indian Republic. It is at such a juncture that the Government has invited President Obama of the United States of America to be the Chief Guest of the Republic Day on January 26. It is a supreme irony that the day which symbolizes India’s independence and sovereignty is being graced by the head of a country which has done the most to assault and destroy the sovereignty of many countries around the world.

Addressing media persons in Kolkata CPI(M) General Secretary Prakash Karat said that various Left parties are coming together on a nationwide platform for a joint campaign.In this connection consultations with various Left parties are taking place. On November 1, a meeting will be held in New Delhi in which the CPI(ML)-Liberation and the SUCI(Communist) will attend apart from the CPI(M), CPI, Forward Bloc and RSP. The meeting will decide on the programme of joint action.

The Left parties express serious concern at the crushing burden of price rise which is affecting all sections of the people. There is no respite in the upwards spiral of prices of food items and essential commodities with food inflation reaching a record high of 20 per cent. The UPA government is adding fuel to the fire by continuously increasing the prices of petrol, diesel, LPG and CNG. The Left parties decided to conduct a protest campaign against price rise

Leaders of the Left parties, the CPI(M), CPI, AIFB & RSP met the Prime Minister today and submitted a memorandum urging the government to take immediate measures to bring a food security legislation in this budget session of parliament, which would provide for a universal public distribution system; ensure 35 kgs of food grains at not more than Rs. 2 per kg and ending the cash transfer scheme for the PDS.

In order to intensify the campaign and widen the movement, the Left parties decided to conduct a countrywide mass signature campaign.The Left parties have given a call to collect five crore signatures. Members and activists of the Left parties will go house-to-house to collect signatures in the months of December 2012 and January 2013.

The Left parties will stage a five day sit-in protest at Jantar Mantar from July 30 to August 3 against price rise and to demand the right to food through a universal public distribution system. The General Secretaries of the four parties, Prakash Karat, Sudhakar Reddy, Debabrata Biswas and T.J.Chandrachoodan, will lead it.

The Left parties are already conducting protests against this price hike. In order to build up a sustained movement to demand a rollback of the price hike, the Left parties have decided to observe an All India Protest Day on May 31, 2012. On this day countrywide protest actions will be held including hartals, demonstrations, picketing, rasta rokos and rallies.

Along with the Left parties, the AIADMK, Telugu Desam Party, Samajwadi Party, Biju Janata Dal, Janata Dal (S) and Indian National Lok Dal have decided to call for a countrywide hartal on July 5. Discussions with some other secular opposition parties to join the hartal is also on.

The Left parties took stock of the ongoing movement against price rise and related issues. It decided to hold a national convention on price rise, food security and connected issues in the beginning of July, from where the future course of action will be announced.